James Wong and the Malaysian Garden
Ethnobotanist and garden designer, James Wong travels to Malaysia in search of inspiration for a Malaysian themed garden for the world famous Chelsea Flower Show. In 2009, James and his design partner David Cubero won a silver medal. In 2010, they are going all out for gold. The theme for their Chelsea garden is the Malaysian concept of 'kampung' a word which means 'village or community' but also 'traditional and natural'. James, whose Father is Malaysian, travels across the country meeting people who live a traditional kampung life in the midst of city skyscrapers and spending time with an indigenous community who show him how they use plants for medicine and ceremony. James also travels to Bako National Park in Sarawak to look for an elusive and protected pitcher plant that he thinks could be the star of his Chelsea garden. In the Cameron Highlands, he tries to understand a strange Malaysian obsession with the English country garden. Back in the UK, he faces the final and most daunting stage of the project - the build. He and his design partner, David, have just 20 days to pull together a garden that is not only good enough to get a Chelsea medal but will also do justice to the spirit of 'kampung' in a 21st century style.